|
 |
|
Remembering PRZM By, Tommy Boone Throughout its history Hip Hop culture artists have tended to have a self centered, boastful mentality that has shown through in both their creative output and their personal character. These ideologies have made it rare to find an individual who has been willing to put his own persona in the backlight in order to influence others in uniting together to make the culture stronger as a whole. Fortunately for the Columbus scene there was DJ Przm, a Deejay, Producer, Emcee and Beat Boxer who did just that. Real name, Christopher Sheffield was born in Detroit, Michigan with a rare heart condition, making his heart three times bigger than the norm. The doctors had predicted that Sheffield would not make it past the age of 3; miraculously he survived well past adolescence, where he developed a fascination with his grandmother's records to begin a lifetime love affair with music. Throughout his teenage years Przm explored the world of Hip Hop by beat boxing in ciphers and deejaying for local parties. Shortly after high school Przm joined up with Infantree, a group of emcees that were ready to explore new territories, their travels eventually relocating Przm to Columbus, Ohio. Sheffield entered a young Columbus scene with a lack of live performances and unity. Przm began deejaying for a local Punk rock bar, Bernie's. He began doing tribute shows on Wednesday night's for fellow Infantree member, Taboo. Przm built up such a reputation that another local artist, DJ Self whom was departing from Cap City decided to hand over his Sunday night Hip Hop slot at Bernies to Sheffield. This is where Przm gathered of all the best emcees together within the area to record albums, put on live performances and anything else that would utilize their talents in a way to create a buzz for local artists. Through these ventures and word of mouth, Przm was able to get large numbers to attend Hip Hop night at Bernie's. He also came up with innovative ways of incorporation the crowd to make it fun so that people would have a reason to come back, such as emcee battles and even musical chairs! Bernies became the place to be for Columbus Hip Hop. Any given Sunday night you could catch any of the members of Przm's group's Fonosluts and Spitball, as well as the likes of Blueprint, Metro, Copywrite, Illogic, RJD2 and Meta4ce. Every week people would come out to create a hip hop atmosphere despite being located in the most unlikely place, a small, dark and grimy punk rock bar. Przm described the importance of Bernie's in the following note... "That place gave us the opportunity to mold the scene. It was grimy and dirty with Soul, and a Vibe that was like no other. Soon as you Walk down the Stairs into the Basement. You entered the Fonosluts Domain, Where you heard nothin but the Rawness! On special occasions you would hear 80's R&B, and Booty House. And when there was only 6 people there, It still ROCKED!!! -Przm p.s if you wasn't hot in Columbus, You Didn't Perform @ Bernie's!!! don't forget all the mofo's we ran off stage, the fight's for the mic, the street style battle's, and yeah the Drunk Nights!" Outside of Bernie's Przm would expose others to his talent by recording solo and group efforts that POS 2 described as "a mixture of hard core boom bap, funk and Hip Hop 101." He spent of all of his free time in the lab trying to invent new musical styles. According to Bru Lei "He was the only person I know that lived in both Michigan and Ohio who chose to create beats instead of watching the OSU vs. UM football game." While touring in 2005 Przm began having problems breathing as a result of his heart condition. By December he had decided to move out to Sacramento, California for the better living conditions and medical services, increasing his chances of getting a heart transplant. Sadly enough Przm passed away at the age of 36 on June 10 th , 2007 due to congestive heart failure. Friends and family of Przm remember him as a compassionate man who loved music, cooking, pool parties, Polo Gear and his daughter, who he wanted to be with more than anything in the world. Before he passed, Przm gave instructions to friends of what he wants to happen to his unreleased material. There will be five full-length albums compiled by his friends; the profits will go directly into a trust fund set up for Sheffield's daughter. It can be argued that Columbus, Ohio has lost the most influential and important person within the local Hip Hop scene. He will be forever missed. Previous Articles
|
|
Blueprint - Iron and Niacin 
Tage Future- Highly Recomended Vol. 1 
Dangerzone - Dangerous Styles 
Doxcity - 
